Do I Qualify for HUD Section 184 Loans?

There is currently a lack of mortgage lending for Natives who live on the Reservation because of the issues with Trust land. Most banks will not allow any financing on Trust land. This can make finding a loan for a tribal member overly difficult. In 1992, Congress created a program that would help address the lack of availability of mortgages on tribal lands and just like that HUD 184 was born. Here is some information to help you find out if you qualify so you can stop asking the question do I qualify for HUD Section 184 loans and finally know the answer!

Are you part of a tribe?

To use the Section 184 Loan, you must be a currently enrolled member of a Federally Recognized Tribe. HUD Rules state that we can have non-natives on the loan, as long as we have at least one enrolled tribal member of a federally recognized tribe on the loan also. The link above leads to a complete list of all federally recognized tribes broken down in the 37 states it is available in. As always, if you have any questions about anything please feel free to reach out to us here at 1st Tribal in the comments section below.

What are you buying?

The first thing to consider is what exactly you’re planning to purchase with your loan. There are several different things that are covered under the HUD 184 loan plan. These different actions include:

Purchase an Existing Home

Refinance a Home (rate and term, streamline, cash out)

Construct a New Home (site-built or manufactured homes on permanent foundations)

Rehabilitate a Home (including weatherization)

Purchase and Rehabilitate a Home

The loan that you can qualify for under HUD Section 184 covers all of these things, and you can find the finer details and fine print of the program here. In order to qualify though, the loan is going to be based off of credit and income. When it comes to credit, if there are any open collection accounts, tax liens, judgments, or late payments of 30 days or longer, then the loan cannot be closed. You have to be able to qualify for monthly payments in order to receive the loan. But, if you have bad credit, with some hard work, time, and energy, you can improve your credit and try to qualify for a HUD 184 loan.

Where can you find a lender?

Once you are ready to apply for a Section 184 loan and know that you can qualify for the HUD 184 loan, you can contact an approved lender. Unfortunately, you can’t just go out and find your own lender. In order to use the HUD 184 loan that you qualify for, you have to use a lender from their federally approved list of lenders. You can find the approved list on the HUD website or here. Some lenders are available all across the country, and some are only available in certain states.

If you need any clarification on what was covered in this post about if you qualify a HUD Section 184 loan, feel free to leave a comment or contact 1st Tribal Lending with your question privately.

Comments (48)

Hello Christol,
Thanks so much for your questions! The HUD 184 program is not credit score driven and you do not qualify just by the score alone. When looking at and reviewing your credit, we do not want to see: open collection accounts, tax liens, judgments, and late payments of 30 days or more. There is an exception to medical accounts if IHS is responsible for an account and will write a letter stating so.
If someone doesn’t have credit, then we can use non-traditional methods of credit that doesn’t show up on a credit report including but not limited to: rent, power, cable, cell phone, water, car insurance, etc. bills.
Hopefully this answers your question! If not, feel free to call us at (510) 856-2184 or email us at webmaster@1tribal.com!

October 20, 2014

admin

Hello, my question is if my husband would qualify. He has his CDIB from the BIA stating he is 1/8 Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa Indian. But membership into the tribe stops at 1/4. Would he be able to qualify?

admin

wanda

Thanks for the question Wanda! Due to your husbands enrolled status, we are able to use the loan off the Rez in MN, but if you want to use the loan on the Rez then we would need to make sure that the tribe has approved the HUD 184 to be used on their lands.

December 5, 2014

admin

Hello, my wife is an enrolled member of a federally recognized tribe in California. We live in Washington state. Would we be eligible to purchase a property in Washington, or is the property required to be in the same state as the tribe?

February 6, 2015

Andrew

Hello Andrew,
Thank you for the question and for visiting the blog! You do have the ability to use the 184 Loan in Washington as long as you/your wife has the tribal enrollment and as long as your wife’s tribe has given approval for the HUD 184 to be used by their members. If you have any further questions, feel free to add another comment, or call us at (510) 856-2184.

February 12, 2015

admin

Will i qualify if i have late payment more than 30 days on a school loan showing on my credit report –but i have since paid the loan off in full. It is the only thing i have ever been late or defaulted on. Everything else is perfect.

Thanks for the great question! As long as the account is paid off, as you said, there should be no problems in applying for the HUD 184 loan. We just don’t want to see late payments on open accounts, collection accounts, judgments, and tax liens. If you have any more questions, feel free to also call us at (866) 235-4033 or add another comment.

February 23, 2015

admin

I am an enrolled member of the Mohawk Tribe here in NYS, but am looking to purchase property that is located off our local reservation – how do I know if I qualify? Also, would my husband be on the loan as well even if he isn’t a Tribal member?

March 9, 2015

Dawn

Thanks for commenting Dawn!
HUD 184 loans can be done off the Reservation and needs to have at least 1 tribal member on the loan. The coborrower can also be non-native, so your husband can be on the loan as well. Unfortunately, 1st Tribal is not licensed in NY and cannot do 184 loans in that state, but if you go to the HUD website, you will be able to find a different 184 lender that has been approved that can help you obtain your loan.

March 13, 2015

admin

I’m an enrolled member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, in Odanah, WI. Can I use 184 for a loan in Michigan. Also I am currently on the deed but I am looking to get the mortgage in my name and money to do much needed renovations. We currently owe $79,000 on a home appraiser at $325,000. Is any of this possible?

March 29, 2015

Mike

Hey Mike,
Thanks for the questions! We are a bit confused on which state you are wanting to use the loan in, whether it’s MI or WI, but either way the loan is eligible for use in both states. Each of our loan officers are licensed in certain states, so whichever state you use the loan in, you may be working with different officers.
What you are trying to do with mortgage is completely possible. We would need to find out if it is on trust land and make sure that the tribe has approved for the loan to be done on their lands. But, off rez in WI or MI the loan can be used anywhere. After that, you will need to credit and income qualify the loan, and once that’s done you’ll need to give us the contractor who is going to do the renovations and how much it is going to cost.

For a more in depth walkthrough and information, feel free you can call our South Dakota branch at 855-288-3123 and talk to Adam Hicks (adam.hicks@1tribal.com) or Eric Sprenkle (eric.sprenkle@1tribal.com).

Mike

admin

Shannon

Thanks for the question Shannon! You and your husband are still eligible as long as you are on the loan along with your husband. As long as there is at least one person who is a member of an approved tribe, then you are good to apply for the loan! If you have any more questions, feel free to also call us at (866) 235-4033 or add another comment.

April 27, 2015

admin

I have an existing Section 184 loan on my current home, however I’m trying to move to a bigger house to start a family, and I plan on renting out the house I’m in now. Would I be eligible for another Section 184 loan or would I have to sell my house first?

May 12, 2015

Tara

Hey Tara,
Thanks for commenting! Unfortunately having two 184 loans open at the same time is not allowed. You will either have to 1) Sell your current house, 2) Refinance into a different type of loan (FHA, conventional, or USDA), and then prove that your tenants have been renting for 6 months or more, and 3) pay off the current 184 loan. But importantly, if you keep the house, you will have to income and credit qualify for both house payments with the next 184 home you get.

Hope that helps! If not, feel free to give us a call at: 866-235-4033 where we can answer all your questions more in depth.

admin

Emily

The section 184 loan is not based upon credit scores. You will need to clear up any collections and not have recent late payments. This program allows for low downpayments with mortgage insurance fees that are lower than other programs.

October 12, 2015

admin

My father has passed away. He lived in Bandon, Oregon. He still owes around 42K on loan. He also has another loan that is for repairs on home which is about 31K balance. Would it be possible to purchase home and take care of repair loan at same time? The house low appraisal is about $139K. Basic quick appraisal from local Realtor.
I am Native. I am a member of the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians in Placerville, CA.

May 20, 2015

Rhondella

admin

Hi, I am enrolled in a recognized tribe and my parent’s have gone through the process. My only question is about job history, though. Is there a strict rule that we must be at our job for two years? I have been at mine for just over 1 year. I have seen some first time home buying programs that don’t require two years at the same job, and would like to know if that is at all possible with this loan?

May 22, 2015

Victoria

admin

I filed for bankruptcy a year and half ago. I am slowly rebuilding my credit. I’ve been able to acquire a credit card with a decent interest rate considering the BK and the rewards have been nice as i pay the card off every month.
My question is what kind of interest rate on a 30yr can I anticipate with a score of 662. I am interested in prequalifying but I’m a bit nervous about doing it too early since I have one more year on my current lease.

Sylvannah

admin

I recently had a 30 day late added to my credit report (simply forgot about it until it was too late). Before that, it had been two years since a late payment on my report. Everything else is on track for me to get a loan – will this keep me from being approved altogether?

July 21, 2015

Shelley

admin

We have a conventional loan off the reservation, would we be able to refinance our home under Section 184? Would it be to our advantage? we would like to do some home improvements with the equity in our home. That is why I am asking about the Section 184. Plus I didn’t know this option was available.

July 25, 2015

Cynthia

admin

Hello,
My fiancé is a member of an approved tribe and we’d like to buy in California. His credit score is 740 and he’s never had any late payments or collections. However, we won’t be able to buy on his income alone. We would like to count my income to qualify for a higher priced home, but my credit is not great. I have open collections on private student loans (I couldn’t pay when I was unemployed) that I am unable to pay off in any of the foreseeable future. In order to consider my income would you also have to consider my credit? Or could we just go off his?

Amber

admin

My husband and I recently bought a home in Denver, Colorado through a FHA loan. We closed on our home on June 26, 2015. I am an enrolled member from the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and would like to do a streamline refinance into the HUD 184 program eliminating the monthly mortgage insurance payment after making 6 timely monthly mortgage payments. If I were to do a streamline refinance into a HUD 184, would you have to pull my credit like a FHA loan to qualify me? What about the DTI ratios? Would I need an appraisal?

August 28, 2015

Tawny

admin

Hello! I was wondering what counties in Arkansas are eligible for the 184 loan. I am a member of the Choctaw Nation Of Oklahoma and have my CDIB and Tribal Membership Cards. I am currently living in my mothers house, but she passed away last year and it is to small for my family and needs a lot of work.

September 18, 2015

Nina Ahmed

admin

My tribe is in the linked list above (is federally recognized) but they are not on the “participating tribes” list. Why are so many federally recognized tribes missing from that list? How does that impact an individual’s ability to make use of sec 184 to buy a home?

Finally, if your tribe has to be “participating” for an individual to be elligable, why does so much of the info out there (including on the hud website in the section about who is eligible) advertise that you only need to be enrolled in a federally recognized tribe? It’s misleading if in reality your tribe has to be ‘participating’.